Riverside vs Auphonic
Plans, free access, limits and intended use side by side, taken from each vendor’s own pages. No score and no winner: the facts show where the two differ.
Change tools
Free transcripts, paid speaker labels
Clean up, level and normalize podcast and video audio automatically, then publish it.
- Free access
- Riverside: Free trial only
- Auphonic: Free access
- Paid from
- Riverside: USD 29 per month
- Auphonic: USD 11 per month
- Plans listed
- Riverside: 6
- Auphonic: 7
- Public API
- Riverside: Yes
- Auphonic: Yes
Where Riverside and Auphonic differ
- AccessRiverside offers a free trial only, while Auphonic offers free access.
- CardRiverside needs a card to start; Auphonic does not.
- Pricing checkPrices confirmed for Riverside; pricing review due for Auphonic.
- PlansRiverside lists 6 plans and Auphonic lists 7.
Head to head
Each value from the tool’s profile and the vendor’s own pages
| Riverside | Fact | Auphonic |
|---|---|---|
| Access and price | ||
| Free trial onlyTranscription tool · USD 0 | Free accessDiffers | Free access availableAuphonic Free |
| USD 29 per monthPro · billed monthly · or $24 per month, billed annually | Lowest listed paid plan | USD 11 per monthAuphonic S (recurring) · billed yearly · USD 132 a year; USD 13 billed monthly |
| Free transcription tool; plans from $24/month billed annually | Pricing model | Free 2 hours per month; paid recurring or one-time credits |
| 6 | Plans listedDiffers | 7 |
| Yes | Public APISame | Yes |
| Required | Card to startDiffers | Not required |
| No | Open sourceSame | No |
| What it is for | ||
| Transcribing and editing multi-track podcast and video recordings | Built for | Automatic post production for spoken audio |
| Audio & voice | CategorySame | Audio & voice |
| Platforms |
|
| Works with |
|
| How current | ||
| Profile sources checked | ||
| Prices confirmed · Sep 29, 2026 | Pricing checkDiffers | Pricing review due · Sep 24, 2026 |
Official source check for both tools. No hands-on testing and no score: “Differs” marks a documented difference, not a better tool.
Plans and prices
Riverside
Prices confirmed · Sep 29, 2026- Transcription toolUSD 0no account needed
- Free trialUSD 0 for 14 dayscard required
- ProUSD 29 per monthbilled monthly · or $24 per month, billed annually
- GrowUSD 39 per monthbilled monthly · or $34 per month, billed annually
- WebinarUSD 99 per monthbilled monthly · or $79 per month, billed annually
Show 1 more plan
- BusinessCustom quote
Auphonic
Pricing review due · Sep 24, 2026- Auphonic FreeFree
- Auphonic S (recurring)USD 11 per monthbilled yearly · USD 132 a year; USD 13 billed monthly
- Auphonic M (recurring)USD 25 per monthbilled yearly · USD 300 a year; USD 30 billed monthly
- Auphonic L (recurring)USD 52 per monthbilled yearly · USD 624 a year; USD 64 billed monthly
- Auphonic XL (recurring)USD 113 per monthbilled yearly · USD 1,356 a year; USD 136 billed monthly
Show 2 more plans
- Auphonic XXL (recurring)USD 245 per monthbilled yearly · USD 2,940 a year; USD 290 billed monthly
- One-Time CreditsUSD 12 for 5 hoursUSD 2.4 an hour, up to USD 2,925 for 3,000 hours · USD 0.975 an hour
Strengths and limits
Riverside
Strengths
- Transcriber needs no account: Files can be uploaded and downloaded as TXT or SRT without signing up.
- Speaker labels from separate tracks: Each participant recorded on a separate track is labeled in the transcript.
- Transcript drives the edit: Text edits, captions and clips all work from the same transcript.
Limits to plan around
- No free plan: The official trial guide says the free plan was replaced by a 14-day trial that needs a card.
- Content may train Riverside models: The terms allow training on inputs and outputs; opting out is limited to Business agreements.
- Capped separate track downloads: Pro allows 15 hours of separate track downloads a month.
Auphonic
Strengths
- Usable free allowance: Two hours of processed audio each month include the leveler, noise reduction, loudness targets and filler cutting.
- One-time credits never expire: Pay-as-you-go credit packs do not expire, which fits irregular production schedules.
- Re-runs do not cost extra: Changing settings and re-processing the same input files in the same production uses no additional credits.
Limits to plan around
- Jingle on free productions: Productions made by free users come with an Auphonic jingle.
- Monthly hours do not roll over: Unused free and recurring credits are lost at the monthly reset.
- Transcripts and shownotes are paid: Speech recognition and automatic shownotes and chapters are not part of the free plan.
See both products
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Questions about comparing tools
How does the comparison work?
Add two tools to the comparison tray from any tool card, then open this page. The table pulls each tool's verified plan details, platforms, strengths and limits from its profile, so both columns carry the same kind of evidence, with a separate source-check date for each tool.
Do you declare a winner?
No. The table sets two tools against each other on documented facts, not on a score. Which one wins depends on your task, your budget and your usage volume — three things we cannot see from here.
Why are some cells empty or marked unverified?
Because we could not confirm that detail on the vendor's own pages. Rather than filling the gap with a figure from elsewhere, we mark it and say why on the tool's profile.
Can I compare more than two tools?
Not at once. Two columns keep the differences readable and force a real decision. Remove either selected tool to replace it, or clear both to start a new pair.
Every figure in the table above comes from the linked profile, where the source and the verification date are listed. Browse all tools or read the editorial policy.